It may seem surprising, but many people are unsure about the different types of coffee beverages out there and what each one is. And who can blame them since navigating the crowded oceans of coffee shops, we are suddenly overwhelmed with a selection of choices, almost more choices than a person should really have.

The choices are almost so out of control that they are often seen on movies in some sort of humorous way. The main character will walk up and say, “I’ll have a no fat, mocha cream, triple foam, double shot chocolate latte, hold the milk,” and somehow, the person behind the counter understands exactly what he wants and will make it up faster than it takes to brew a coffee.

Although there are tons of different types of coffee drinks such as espresso, latte, cappuccino, gourmet coffee, iced coffee, flavored coffee and on and on, we aren’t really worried at this point in figuring out what all those are. The main question at this moment is what is a latte?

I’m sure that we have all heard about lattes and no doubt you have heard the term, the latte factor. The latter is actually the amount of money that you can save if you take daily expenses, such as purchasing a latte or coffee, and save it. As interesting as that can be, what I would like to talk about is the former and get down to bottom of what a latte is.

So for the simple answer. A latte is a coffee drink that is layered with espresso, warmed milk and milk foam. That is it, nothing too spectacular about the beverage if you really think about it.

But now for a little more information in that answer. As I already said, a latte is a coffee beverage that is sold in most coffee houses. It is made by using espresso shots. Usually people will make a latte with a double shot of espresso but it can be made with only one shot.

What makes a latte different than other beverages is the fact that it uses more steamed milk than most coffee drinks. In a latte, you will generally use about 2/3 milk to 1/3 espresso. This creates a creamier beverage than you would get with a cappuccino and more so than an espresso.

The last layer on a latte is the foam. Although you will find that everyone makes their lattes differently, generally, there is only a small amount of foam on the top of the coffee and milk beverage.

And that is what a latte is, a wonderful combination of coffee and milk.

-Sirena Van Schaik